


Oddball Clan Origins

by doomedNephilim



Category: Destiny (Video Games)
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Fireteam (Destiny), Game Mechanics as Plot Devices, Gen, How Do I Tag, My First AO3 Post, Pre-Towerfall, Tagging as I go, The Tower (Destiny), canon typical revive die then revive again, mildly canon compliant
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-12
Updated: 2020-07-29
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:27:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,613
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24672328
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/doomedNephilim/pseuds/doomedNephilim
Summary: Often times Guardians form clans out of necessity in the field or random chance in the Crucible. The Oddball clan is no different. It started when a couple fireteams ran into each other and the rest, they say, is history. This is how each of the Oddballs met each other, how they formed their teams and later their clan.
Kudos: 3





	1. Awake, Awoken

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! Welcome to my first actual story here!
> 
> I have no idea what I'm doing.
> 
> BiWeekly updates hopefully?
> 
> Bungie owns all of Destiny. The Oddball Clan characters are all mine.

Firefights in the City are rare, so rare in fact that no one truly knows what to do when they happen and pandamonium breaks out, causing panic until Guardians are able to show up to take control of the situation. But because of the delay in transmatting from the Tower to the City proper, the responding Guardians always have a difficult time when faced with the panicked screaming, the frantic crowds pushing and shoving to get away, the echo of gunshots, the stillness of the deceased and the silent pain in the eyes of those who survive. Despite the infrequency, every time something does occur, the whole of the Vanguard takes a heavy morale hit, for it shows how desperate, how scared the people they protect really are. 

This particular time, Commander Zavala was horrified to see that the victims were two young Awoken, one with the darker colouration of a Reef Born and the younger with the paler complexion but darker glowing eyes of an earthborn of their shared race.Their killer stood proudly in front of the alleyway where he had killed them, their blue-violet-red blood splattered across his clothes and an ancient golden age revolver clasped tightly in his hands as he shouted and pontificated to the milling, cowering, panicked citizens that gathered around. He was an old, crazed homeless man known for his hatred of Exos, Awoken and anything decidedly not human, known too for causing mayhem, attacking Awoken and the few Exos that lived in the city mostly out of spite and perceived aggression.

“This is what is in store for all who are not of US! Humanity has long been the greatest and these… /things/ that used to be human are not like us, they don’t belong. The Tower tells us that the darkness is the greatest threat to us and these /freaks/ are touched by the darkness so they do not deserve to exist. If they have welcomed the darkness into their hearts and bodies, they are scum and must be purged!” He screamed, brandishing the gun at the Awoken in the crowd while the humans murmured distrustingly.

Having heard enough, Zavala strode forward, his expression alone sending the crowd scattering like thrall before a wizard until the alleyway was deserted again and all that was left was the dead, the hobo and the guards who were slowly backing away out of sight of the seriously pissed off Vanguard Commander. The old fanatic noticed slowly that his audience had vanished and the street was now empty save for a huge Awoken male who was glaring at him as he approached. Terrified of the Vanguard who was closing in on him, the killer raised the revolver once more, hands shaking terribly as he aimed at Zavala.

“Stay back, you vile usurper! You have no power over a superior species!” He shrieked, panicked, firing once, twice, three times at the Commander, who didn’t even flinch as the bullets dinged off his shields. “Tremble before the might of human-” He stopped short, his shout dying sharply as a knife arced down from the top of the building and shattering the ancient technology and turning his hand to shards and ribbons of flesh. Above, Cayde-6 glared balefully at the scene below him, tempted to let his own Light destroy the fanatical human below him but he had more important things to do, namely keeping Ikora from blowing the entire alley way up in anger and despair that children were dead and she could do nothing. Below them, Zavala closed in on the old man who stumbled backwards, sobbing and whining in pain and fear, cringing away from the faint tendrils of Void that curled off of Zavala. “You…” The Vanguard Commander growled, dangerously close himself to killing the man via Void discharge around him. “You are the worst scum of this City, of this world and you will pay for your crimes.” 

Reaching forward, he seized the man by the front of his shirt and held him up to eye level as he continued to snarl at him. “These two Children were harming no one and you killed them in cold blood because you could, because you thought you were better than them. Awoken are human, you poor excuse for humanity, and they are more human than you.” 

The man whimpered as Void energy licked at him, leaving trails of pain and blackened skin across his face and down his arms. Zavala threw him back, out of the alleyway and let the guards drag him to be dealt with by the Consensus, if he survived that long at least. If the guards didn’t take care of him first or the crowds didn’t lynch the madman before he reached the holding cells in the tower. After a long moment, Zavala turned toward the fallen forms of the two Awoken as the Void energy that he contained dimmed and fizzled out and his anger turned to sadness. 

From the reports buzzing in his ear and flashing across his HUD, the older girl had tried to protect the younger when their killer attacked them for having a home while he lived on the streets as part of the homeless population. The older girl had been shot first, non-fatally and kicked aside by the shooter who went after the younger. After a moment of pleading for his life to be spared, the taller Awoken had surged to her feet and charged at the man but not before he shot the boy, instantly killing him. According to the account he was receiving from Cayde who had found a security feed from the end of the alley, the female had gathered the boy up and begged for it to not be real before the fanatic shot her a second time and killed her. Zavala allowed a few rare tears to fall, surprised as he was to hear that a Reef-born had tried so vehemently to protect an Earth-born Awoken, as the latter were typically looked down on by the Reef-born.

Silently, Zavala paid his respects to the fallen siblings before turning to leave the coroner, who had just arrived, to his work, when a familiar whirring sound was heard from farther in the alleyway and a pair of voices piped up. 

“Oh no! We are too late!” came a tinny mechanical voice. 

“No we aren’t, you know that. We can fix this.” replied a second voice before it shouted for anyone nearby to stand back. Zavala pivoted on his heel to see two unfamiliar ghosts expand to channel their gift of Light and the alleyway was filled with a blinding flash. A moment later, Zavala opened his eyes and lowered his hand to see the two Awoken standing, blinking in the dim light of the Traveler overhead before focusing on each other with simultaneous gasps. The Older Awoken tackled the younger, sobbing as she frantically checked him over for his injuries.

“Don’t you dare ever do that again.” She scolded, tears streaming in glittering lines down her face as she hugged the smaller boy close. 

“Always and forever, Kana.” The Boy murmured into her shoulder, holding her tightly as if she might disappear if he didn’t. 

Quietly, Zavala waited, watching with thinly veiled surprise at two new Guardians. The Commander had never seen Guardians be raised from those living in the current era since most guardians came from the Golden Age or earlier. Slowly he reached and pulled his helmet off and turned to look back at Ikora, who stood at the opening of the alley, her fingertips pressed to her mouth and unshed tears glinting in her eyes. The two Vanguard shared a moment of silent communication before Zevala turned back to the young pair. After waiting briefly for the tearful reunion to finish, he cleared his throat and stepped forward to get their attention. The Older child startled, not having noticed the audience before and dragged the younger behind her protectively, untested but obviously potent potential showing itself in the hum of Void energy that flashed and built up on her arms as she went defensive in front of her brother. Behind her, the younger Awoken crackled with Arc energy and looked ready to leap over his sister in her defense.

Holding his empty hands up to pacify the pair of fledgling Guardians, Zavala mentally called his ghost to materialize from its hidden pocket in his armor in hopes of furthering reassurance before he said, “I am glad you two are now alright. I am Commander Zavala, Titan Vanguard of the Tower. Beyond the sudden resurrection, are you two alright?” Beside him, his ghost twittered concerned and scanned the pair to make sure there was nothing that had not been repaired during their transition.

The younger Awoken nodded slowly, glowing bronze-yellow eyes still narrowed suspiciously at the older Titan while the elder teen started at her Void clad hands. “Void energy?” She murmured, confusion causing her voice to waver slightly. “But… only Guardians have the ability to… oooh.” She continued to stare at her hands as the Void began to fade slowly away until a twitchy, purple angular eye inched closer to hover by her hands, the shell of the ghost matching the deep, flexing purple that shrouded her hands.

“That makes you a Guardian, doesn’t it? Pretty cool, eh?” the cheery, childlike voice chirped as it twirled and reconfigured it’s plates to smile in the ghost way. The elder Awoken sibling blinked slowly as she processed this development before the Void power faded fully away and she was able to hold her hand out to the floating robot as she looked up at Zavala. She managed to respond to him, with a quiet, “No lasting pain currently, sir.” before falling silent and letting her own brighter golden eyes dart around to take in everything around her, looking to see what had changed visually or otherwise in her perception.

Zavala quirked an eyebrow at the military precise deflection to his question until he noted the faint white lines that marred the edge of her jaw, cheek and right eye, signs of shrapnel damage that he would see on many Reef Born Guardians who had fought in the wars that still stirred out in the rim. Resurrection couldn’t fix everything, especially pre-existing injuries. Letting his curiosity take a back seat to current matters, he beckoned to the pair of new Guardians. “Come, we will get you outfitted at the Tower and settled in new rooms before we see what you are suited to.” He said, wanting desperately to get these two out of the streets and away from potential harm. A warm, protective feeling sparked in the older Guardian’s chest, almost paternal in a way as he led the pair out to the main roads and led them towards the transports that awaited him. Behind him, he heard the younger teen voice an objection.

“What about our stuff in the house, Kana?” He questioned, almost as if he wanted to balk at going to the Tower. The older sibling shook her head before replying.

“I don’t think there is anything useful there anyways, Jak’. We can always go back later once we get this figured out.” She waved in Zavala's general direction as if he was the “this” she was referring to. “Besides, I doubt my old armor would fit very well and everything else is easily replaceable.” She finished, pushing her brother towards the transport. Around them, the populace milled and watched, curious as to where these two new Guardians had appeared from, as most fledgling Guardians came from beyond the walls and never from within the City itself. Cayde and Ikora joined them on their walk, their stern expressions coupled with Zavala's troubled one kept citizens and lobbyists from approaching. While Zavala was the one that the Consensus sent people to beg and plead with and the general people held comradery with Cayde, all were deterred today by the power that could be felt rolling off the three Vanguard. Behind them, the two siblings kept quiet, occupied by their ghosts chattering in their neural connections. The younger sibling seemed uncomfortable with his new friend but he stayed relatively quiet save to wince every now and then at his new companion’s mental exuberance.

When they finally arrived at the transport, Zavala shepherded them aboard and shared a hushed conversation with Ikora as the ship brought them to the Vanguard’s landing platform, behind their quarters. As the door opened, Zavala looked over at his newest charges and quietly said, “Welcome, Guardians, to the Tower.”


	2. Lone Wolf Seeking Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay I lied... weekly updates until I run out of pre-written chapters. I just finished the fourth one and still have to figure out how the next one will start. 
> 
> But here... let me know your thoughts? Please?
> 
> Bungie owns Destiny, I own my characters.

A Fallen Vandal and a squad of Dregs lay in wait around a busy turn in the canyon leading from the Mothyards to the Shattered Coast, hoping to increase their station by surprising and executing a Guardian and bring back the fallen ghost to their Captain. Their muffled harsh chatter was the only sound other than the rush of water as they whispered stories of Guardians that had laid waste to their Barons and Archons in the past few months.

To slay a Guardian was an accomplishment in its own right, especially in the Cosmodrome, given the higher concentration of Guardians there, especially since the recent uptick in activity had wrested control of the area from the House of Kings. The Fallen had been forced to pull back and consolidate their forces, bemoaning the loss of their conquest. It was these few Dregs and Vandal that hoped to begin the Fallen’s return to power in the area before the Guardian’s had full control over the Cosmodrome and drove the Fallen fully from it, if they lived. No one ever said that Fallen were smart and these particular Fallen had delusions of grandeur that would prove to be their undoing.

High above them, a pair of lights reflected the setting light of the setting Sol star as a shape appeared with a flash and rattle of dispersed Arc energy and peered over the edge of the canyon. Behind the faded and battered visor of the Guardian’s helm, a smirk spread as the hunters became the hunted, prey to the Hunter waiting patiently above. A soft laugh escaped the perched Hunter as their Ghost materialized with a smattering of particles and gave it’s charge the ghost version of a wink before descending down the rock face to harry the impatiently waiting Fallen below them. 

“Evening Boys,” the battered shell chirped, hovering just out of their reach, impishly flexing its plates to mock the aliens. Roaring in guttural affront, the Dregs swarmed forward, attempting to attack the floating machine. The Ghost laughed at their attempts, jittering upward out of the reach of grasping claws. “Do you kiss your mothers with that mouth? Do Fallen even have mothers?” The Ghost then said something in Elinski that had the Dregs nearly foaming at the mouth, trying to tear the tiny light bearer out of the sky.

Cackling, the Ghost led the Dregs further from the safety of cover as the crack of a sniper rifle echoed sharply and the ether hose on one of the Dregs exploded, suffocating the creature immediately. It fell to the ground and writhed in pain as its comrades whipped around to watch, slow comprehension filtering into their eyes as they chittered in surprise.. Another echoing gunshot that reverberated through the canyon and another Dreg fell, it’s abdomen exploding in a spray of colours that splattered across the rocks in a gory painting. The remaining six Fallen squawked again in fear as the Vandal scampered to a hiding place in order to scream into its comm for help but the comm was blasted out of its hand. “Oh now you’ve gone and made her mad. Why would you do that? Now I’m going to have to calm her down and that is going to take forever.” The Ghost sighed as the last of the Dregs were obliterated.

The Vandal attempted to flee but to little avail as its legs were blasted out, destroying his joints and leaving him crawling on the ground, fearful whimpers escaping his Ether mask. From above, the Hunter jumped down from the cliff's edge to land with a muffled thud, her dusty boots leaving faint impressions as they slowly walked over to the Fallen, which screamed and chittered as it tried to pry out the weapon trapped beneath it. The alien froze its movements when the Hunter pulled their knife out as the external speakers on the Guardian’s helmet crackled to life.

“Well next time, don’t be such a baby and call for help.” The Hunter snarked before flicking their wrist forward and sending the knife into the Fallen’s face with a satisfying explosive release of Ether. A moment later, the corpse stopped twitching and the Hunter yanked the knife out of the head, wiped the blood and other fleshy bits off on their pants and resheathed the blade. “Come on, Ghost, let’s head home. I’m bored and I’m out of bounties.” the speakers crackled and the pair disappeared in a flash of particles as their ship swooped low through the canyon to pick them off and then, with a roar of sublights, shot off towards the Tower. 

“You know, if you are really bored, you could always talk to Shaxx about working the Crucible and training the younger Guardians.” The Ghost offered quietly as it settled into the mounted rest on the dash of the jumpship. The Hunter scoffed, which crackled and whined through the speakers of the helmet as the entire piece of armor sparked, causing them to pull it off their head and throw it behind them in disgust. The plasteel and metal bucket clattered around as it rolled around before settling into a divot in the floor panels “Teaching KinderGuardians ain’t exactly my thing. I’ve got no patience. Besides, running into Disciple would be the last thing that Shaxx wants his baby guardians to see.” the Hunter growled as they turned back to the console and let their eyes tick over the gauges and readouts. 

“That and there might not be much of the arena left if he was there. You might be right, then… What about a Strike or something like that? There has to be a duo looking for a third for a hunt or something. I know you prefer working solo but… oh hang on. You nicked your face again.”

The Ghost flickered up and tutted over a thin cut that marred the Hunter’s cheek, a few sparking wires underneath the metal plating that made up Exo skin. Pulsing lightly, the Ghost watched the wires stop sparking and repair themselves as the cut sealed over without scarring. “You really do need to be more careful when dealing with Dregs. I know you are a high powered BladeDancer but cuts like that can build up and sometimes I miss them, which could be bad for you in the long run.” The Ghost gently scolded, bumping gently against the Exo Hunter’s faceplates.

Chuckling lightly, the Exo let their blue lit eyes fall to the ghost and they reached up to pet it gently. “Why would I do that when I know I have you to keep me in line? What’s a little risk when you are as old as I am?” They answered with questions of their own, smirking at the floating machine. The Ghost gave them a halfhearted glare and let the matter fall, since it was the same argument the pair had been having for years.

Minutes later, as silence filled the tiny cabin, the Hunter reached City airspace and, once calls were given, clearance granted and one particularly grumpy tower controller with attitude was successfully cowed by a scathing verbal lashing, the Hunter brought their ship into the open bay and, letting the automatic docking procedures take over, waited only a moment for the ship to settle in it’s designated bay. Kicking the defunct helmet out of their way, they stood and moved to gather their things when the console lit up with a comms transmission and the cabin filled with the crackling voice of ShipWright Holiday. “Got orders for you to report to Cayde there, Lux. He’s been bugging the hell out of me to let him know when you made it planetside again… And What the Hell did you do to your ship? Drive it through a Hive Nest?!”

The ShipWright’s voice grew shrill as she saw the damage done to the Hunter’s ship as her frames began fussing over every crack and tear in the paneling. Extending the docking ramp and stomping out of her ship, the metal creaking beneath their boots, the Hunter’s eyes winced as their audio sensors tried to calibrate to the noise of the Tower and Holiday’s continued shrieking. “Not my fault the Hive like to throw themselves at my ship as I fly past.” The Hunter replied, handing over a heavy box of parts and scavenge that the human mechanic requested in the bounties that the Hunter had picked up on their last trip planetside.

Shaking her head in disbelief, Holiday accepted the heavy package as well as the several other boxes of bounty parts and other supplies the Hunter had found during their patrols and scavenging missions. The little jumpship was stuffed full of supplies, scrap, junk and scavenged weapons to sell or dismantle and Holiday’s eyes lit up like a child during Dawning. “That should cover the repairs and some extras for everyone else who might need something. Just let me know if you need anything the next time I am out.” the Exo said quietly, letting their lone wolf facade fall for a moment to express some care for other Guardians before the figurative mask slammed back into place. Twisting on their heel and heading towards the main plaza to see an Exo about a helmet and then deal with the Hunter Vanguard, the Hunter left a mildly bemused ShipWright shaking her head behind and a pair of watchful eyes peering after them with interest.


	3. The Crucible isn't always Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is a point to these chapters, I promise... just bear with me. I've got a couple more chapters in the works and then it will all make sense. These chapters are interconnected, as you will clearly see from this one. It ties neatly into the previous chapter and the next chapter.
> 
> I have forgotten to mention that this story is unbetaed.
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> Bungie owns Destiny. I only own my characters.

"Finish this battle, Guardian. Your team is in the lead."

The sound of Shaxx's voice echoed across the arena over the sporadic sounds of gunfire and the distant voices of orders shouted between teammates. A lone hunter darted across the trampled grass of the Twilight Gap arena, far removed from the other five in his assigned group, who were fighting within the steel and concrete jungle of the back end of the building. Ahead, on the exposed support beams of the defunct hanger, a ghost zoomed into view and revived a guardian from the opposing team. The lone hunter grinned and smoothly slid to a crouch, rifle raised and fired off a shot as soon as the respawn shield dropped. The returning Guardian fell off the side of the catwalk and into the abyss at the edge of the cliff, a single sniper round in his head. The Ghost zoomed out of the mists below and fixed the Hunter with a withering look before heading off to find a safer corner to bring their guardian back.

Inside his helmet, the Hunter's eyes narrowed with glee as he lined up his shots again to take out other reviving Guardians until the comms channel was filled with chatter from the rest of his group, wondering why the opposing team was ignoring them. Cackling, the Hunter headed to a clearer area with only a few broken shipping containers cluttering the edges and waited. While the comms chimed with confusion and the sudden realization of what was going on, the entire enemy team charged in, completely surrounding the Guardian. Curses, grenades, a few rocket launcher rounds and general irate screaming crashed down where the Hunter was standing, only for the smoke to clear and the Hunter to slam down from up high, awash with Arc energy. He had blinked upwards, effortlessly dodging all attacks and in the midst of his jump, pooled his Light into his hands to form his Arc Blades only to leave a Titan-like ripple of Arc Energy cascading through the entire opposing team, locking them in place.

"Finish them, Hunter!" Shaxx bellowed from above.

With speed supplied by the months of practice and general cockiness, the Hunter threw a mocking salute at the opposing team and cut them down like paper figures, coming to a halt just as his Arc Blades dissipated. Around him, the fizzles of dissipating Arc after images faded away as the Crucible Commander called the final scores and ended the match.

Immediately following the end of the match, a chorus of complaints lit up the channel as the opposing team raised a litany of anger. Amusingly, the Arc Hunter's teammates complained as well, frustrated with the lack of teamwork and the glory hunting that the Hunter had rampaged with. Shaxx laughed, waving them all off. "An impressive display from a hunter like this one just means you have something to work towards. If you truly are that upset over it, go take your anger out in the next round. Learn something from this and maybe you can be just as great."

Helmet off, the Hunter smirked, Exo faceplates shifting to express emotion and general cockiness as he watched the grumbling crowd disperse towards the shuttles back to the City. He turned, unholstering his secondary and heavy weapons onto one of the tables that lined the lobby of the Crucible arena and proceeded to field strip them down. Picking up a grease stained rag from the pile at the end of the table, the Exo held his hand out to let his Ghost free to roam a little before setting to wiping down every crevice and mechanism of the weapon pieces. Returning from the doorway at the edge of the lobby after seeing the shuttled off, Shaxx crossed his arms and the room to lean against the table beside the distracted guardian.

"An impressive display today… though this batch of KinderGuardians didn't seem to take kindly to your method of teaching." Shaxx rumbled good-naturedly. The Guardian chuckled quietly, facial plates and mesh lighting up with his voice.

"Not my fault they can't take a little tough love. Besides, it isn't like they would learn any other way out in the field." The Hunter waved a hand dismissively before snapping all the pieces of his sidearm together in three second flat. "A little bit of a brutal takedown and complete out-match is good for them. It's how Lux pounded me when I first got here. Might as well keep the tradition going of brutalizing their egos to keep mine from hurting too much when she pounds my ass… no wait, not like that, but you know what I mean." Shaxx watched, mildly impressed at the speed the Hunter managed in putting the sidearm back together before chuckling, shaking his head and patting the Guardian on the shoulder, causing him to fumble the long barrel of his dismantled sniper rifle and drop it to the floor.

The Crucible master snorted at the disgruntled, quiet cursing that ensued before turning to leave, saying "Don't get too carried away here, Disciple. You are a fantastic shot and a good mentor to others but… You do need to go out for field work sometime soon. The Crucible is a good place to hone your skills but out in the field is where the real need for Guardians is."

The Exo waited until Shaxx's heavy footsteps faded before he set his rifle parts back down and looked over where his Ghost was watching quietly from the corner of the table. The two stared at each other for a while before the Hunter groaned and pulled his hood over his face to scream into the fabric. The Ghost hummed sympathetically, bumping its body against the guardian's hand in a gesture of reassurance. Vocal circuits hoarse, the Hunter shoved his hood back before shoving his rifle back together, complaining to his Ghost floating by his shoulder.. "Field Work they say, get out of the Crucible they say… Find some friends or a fireteam they say… Why can't I just go to the Lighthouse and stay there. I don't like field work and I especially don't like… teamwork. Click, dude.. I don't…"

The Ghost shifted its plates and transmatting the completed weapons back into storage as the Guardian finished with his rocket launcher. "I think you need some friends to talk to, Disciple… Perhaps you should visit with Epsilon again? You haven't met up with him and his partner in a while." The floating bot said, tilting slightly and its voice pitching ever so slightly to press its charge into action. "I think you would feel a lot better. Run a few missions with them… maybe there are a few bounties that you can work on to get some new gear for the Crucible. These weapons are wearing a little thin and soon they will really only be good for repairs."

Disciple shrugged, patching some rust on the loader of his rocket launcher. "You are probably right." With a thud, a scrape and a trill of holographic sights coming back online, the Hunter finished with maintenance on his rocket launcher and held it out for his Ghost to store. "You know, Click, I think I'll see if Eps can convince his keeper to let him out for a bit. The moon looks awfully lonely since Crota got got and I bet the Hive could use some playmates." He snickered, pulling out his datapad to send a message to his best friend. Really his only friend, if Disciple was to be honest.

A few moments later, the Guardian held a hand out to his Ghost so that the smaller mechanical could transport them back to their waiting ship and head back towards the City. Oddly, Epsilon hadn't responded yet and the Warlock was usually very quick to respond which had Disciple anxiously bouncing his leg against the side of the cockpit of his jumpjet style ship. As Click lowered the ship into the transmatt zone, the Hunter jumped from the cockpit and blinked out to land on the edge of the Tower, sprinting forward to the first frame he could find. "Can you tell me where Epsilon the VoidWalker Warlock currently is?" He asked, trying not to sound worried or panicked in his request.

"Apologies Guardian Disciple-2, but Guardian Epsilon has requested that he be marked as unreachable at this time." The frame responded, its electronic voice flat and emotionless but the Exo felt a faint flicker of concern across the neural network that all Exos and frames seemed to be able to tune into. Groaning in frustration, Disciple thanked the frame and slowly made his way back across the Courtyard to the Bounty Board, deciding to flick through the various missions and job requests until he found a promising looking one for the Moon. Worst case scenario, the Hunter would be able to take care of this on his own but he decided there was no harm in hanging around the Tower for a bit to see if his friend showed up.

Across the Courtyard, the Hunter made eye contact with another Hunter, this one battered and worn but moving with grace and poise that belied their experience, their cloak ragged, old and dusty, emerged from the archway that lead to the landing pads, seemingly newly arrived from the Cosmodrome. Disciple facepalmed and heaved an electronic sigh as the other Hunter beelined right for him, a hand slipping to the knife sheath at their hip as if they expected the other Guardian to attack them in the middle of the Tower, a strict no active weapons zone. Disciple responded by reaching for his grenade slot, feeling the tickle of Arc Energy building

"Got to say, I didn't think I'd see your sorry ass in the Tower anytime soon, babybot." The much older Exo said, tilting their head so their glowing eyes were the only thing visible in their hood, narrowed and mocking.

Disciple scoffed in response. "I didn't think you would ever drag yourself out of the 'Drome, you old hag."

The pair stared at each other for another moment before slowly releasing their respective weapons but their fingers twitching and flexing with Arc. It was like watching two dogs circle each other with their hackles raised, snarling but their tails still wagging slightly, not truly interested in attacking each other, merely posturing for effect. Around them, the Courtyard fell into an uneasy silence, the other guardians and Tower workers noticing the mounting tension between the two on the steps by the Bounty board. A few Guardians were carefully, slowly attempting to approach while one of the workers sprinted towards the main Vanguard room. A moment later, Cayde emerged, looking up at them from the tunnel entrance.

"Alright you two, break it up. Do not make me get Zavala." The Hunter Vanguard said, his facial lights glowing with amusement at the two Hunters. The elder hunter guardian rolled their optics and crossed their arms, looking anywhere but the Vanguard while Disciple at least had the sense to look sheepish. Sighing, Cayde waved the two down from the stairs and into the tunnel, away from everyone staring at them and keeping Banshee from letting his trigger finger get itchy from wanting peace and quiet.

"Now then" He said, his more jovial demeanor fading to a more stern one. "Lux, you have a meeting with me in five, downstairs. Disciple… that bounty looks like it needs to be completed now, not later. Off you go, chop chop." The horned Exo clapped his hands before making a shooing motion at the much younger Exo. Huffing, Disciple bowed slightly to the Vanguard and spun on his heel to leave. A grumbled response drifted back to the pair. "I didn't do anything but fine."

Not even waiting to hear from Eps, the young Hunter Exo transmitted right to his jumpship and shot off into orbit, heading for Luna. Disgruntled, he sent one last message to Epsilon and, begrudgingly, to Ewyn, letting them know that he was on his way to the Moon and that they should meet him there. A roar of sublights and the rattle of metal around him left the Hunter staring at the Moon coming closer through the front viewscreen, wondering why he bothered with other guardians.


	4. You don't have to be siblings...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay! Real life is kicking my ass and my creative muse.
> 
> Comments and Ideas are welcome as I have hit a major case of writers block for the next chapter.
> 
> Bungie owns Destiny. I only own the Oddball clan and characters.
> 
> Enjoy!

Ikora's massive library was still and silent, the archives of bygone years saved and salvaged in paper and data kept safe in a massive treasure trove of information and research. Writings from centuries before the Traveler came and some from after, some even older and stolen from the Hive, the Vex and others and others written by Guardians like Toland, Osiris and even Ikora herself. The darkened walkways held shadows that curved and reached for everything in their path, lit only by the softly blinking lights of the datapads and data storage devices that lined the shelves between tomes, scrolls and ancient books bound in cracking leather and deteriorating paper. The stillness of the air and solemnity of the room cast a less than welcoming ambiance that pervaded everything and sometimes spread to other areas of that level of the Tower. And yet there are still some who hunger for knowledge, driven by curiosity beyond what they are allowed to know, what the Vanguard sanctions them to learn or study, beyond right and wrong, things that are said to be outside the purview of the Light. Only a privileged few are allowed in Ikora's Library and even then only during the day and under supervision. And those who are not on the Warlock Vanguard's shortlist are left behind, desperate to know what is behind the locked gates and password protected doors on Ikora's personal floor.

Some warlocks, however, are not above getting their robes dirty and are willing to sacrifice much in order to pursue their thirst for knowledge or, in one particular case, find harmony in the grey area between the Light and the Dark.

The softly glowing lights in the depths of the library flickered slightly, their luminosity dimming slightly before returning to their usual steady light as a faint beeping could be heard in the ceiling just before a grate fell from the ceiling, on a crash course with the ground and the grid of lasers that covered the floor to prevent thieves and other intruders. As the metal fell, there was a flash of Sol and the heavy metal was caught only inches above the laser grid by a hand of a materialized Warlock suspended only by a wire attached to their waist. Directly above the suspended Guardian and the metal ceiling tile, another Guardian poked their head over the edge of the hole in the ventilation system, a smile plastered across his face. He opened his mouth to say something but the guardian below him whipped around and glared, silver eyes hard and expression more than stormy as her shoulders flickered with Sol energy.

"Not. One. Word." She snarled, hefting the metal in her hand up and pulling herself up the wire that held her hanging. Carefully swinging her body, the female Guardian let go of the wire to float gently to the top of the bookshelf. She set the grate down with a subdued clank and then looked around. The Sol powered Warlock waved to the other in the vents before she turned and jumped across the bookshelves to the far end of the vaulted room. Behind her, the other Guardian jumped down and floated to a different shelf before sitting down and pulling out a datapad. The vaulted room returned to silence save for the distant rustles of the Sunsinger rifling through shelves and the soft tapping of gloves on the screen of the pad from the seated Warlock. Minutes passed as the Sunsinger could be seen climbing shelves and boosting herself across gaps in the decor, hanging from fixtures and statues in order to pull tomes, datapads or whatever is was that she was searching for while her companion half watched her antics and half watched the screen in his hands, a security feed trained on Ikora playing silently. An hour passed before the datapad was powered off and the waiting figure flopped backwards, his ghost popping up silently to hover and then rest of the Guardian's chest. A muffled groan escaped him as he lay there, frustrated, idly kicking his boot heels against the top of the bookshelf. A moment later the Warlock sat up abruptly, lifted his wrist and tapped his comms on.

"Are you nearly done, Ewyn? I'm dying of boredom here." A distinctly male voice sliced through the silence. Distantly, a clatter sounded and a faint curse again from the far end of the vault before the other Warlock activated her own comm and hissed a reply.

"Well now I am… the alarm just tripped, genius, because you spooked me and I dropped a scroll. We've got three minutes before Ikora and security get here. Get back in the vent and head out, Eps, before you get caught… again." Ewyn's voice betrayed all her emotion, causing 'Eps' to cringe slightly before standing and staring out where his friend was climbing back up to the top of the shelves in the distant part of the Library. Heaving a sigh, he stood and jumped back into the vent, a discharge of Void following and lighting the area with a faint purple light as he floated upwards. Behind him, Ewyn was jumping from case to case, only sometimes lighting the area with Sol light when she reached a longer jump requiring a little more power behind her legs. The Void Warlock safely in the vents and moving away quickly meant that she was clear to make her own jump. Reaching the top of the bookcase she had left the grate on, Ewyn leaned down and grabbed it, a steady stream of complaints and curses escaping her as she moved towards the vent. "Traveler-blasted moron keeping me from finishing my research… how would he like it if I clued fucking Cayde into his stupid, light-be-damned antics? This is going to set me back an entire month if we get caught but noooooo… he couldn't keep his Traveler-blasted mouth shut for two more minutes."

The steady stream of curses ceased for a moment as the Sol powered Guardian leapt into the vent, the metal grate clanging as she brought it up behind her and locked it into place. Below her, the doors to Ikora's library burst open to reveal an irate Vanguard and five security officers. Above, Ewyn held her breath as the group fanned out and Ikora could be heard giving terse orders as she stalked down the aisles herself. The Warlock Vanguard could be heard hissing into her own comms about intruders and her feeling that she knew who it was. It wasn't until the Vanguard Warlock reached the back corner opposite from the vent opening that Ewyn had used that the intruder dared to move as Guardians had slightly better hearing than normal humans and it would have probably resulted in the Sol Warlock being caught if she had moved while Ikora was closer. Slowly, Ewyn moved back up the vents and out into the lower levels of the Temple, where her partner waited impatiently, tapping his foot and peering around the corners that led to the access point the two had been using.

Once Ewyn emerged, 'Eps' opened his mouth to apologize and probably complain in the same breath but the female Guardian forestalled him with a raised hand before turning on her heel and striding down one of the corridors. The male rolled his eyes exaggeratedly before following after her. "Oh come on, Ewyn… It's not like I meant to spook you! We've done this every night for three weeks now… how could you not know I would be bored as hell" The Void 'Lock whined, jogging lightly to catch up to her. "You had to have been done with that shelf by now… besides, it's not like you needed me to stand guard. You know Ikora's always in a meeting with Zavala at that time; that's why you picked it."

"It's more than just research at this point, Epsilon!" Ewyn exclaimed, stopping short and spinning on her heel to stare the other Warlock in the face. Fire in her eyes and Sol licking up her arms and shoulders had sent more than one Guardian scrambling for cover and if that didn't, the heat coming from her was easily a good cause to step back. Epsilon stopped short to avoid the finger pointed in his face and the tendrils of Sol from licking at the front of his armour, his hands held up in surprise. The blonde haired guardian continued, her voice scathing and irate, "It's so much more than that and you should be able to understand that but no, you just want to be a problem. Yes, I bring you as a lookout because sometimes Ikora will leave her meeting early or run to the library to grab something for that meeting and you are supposed to let me know if you see or hear anything. And you are well aware of how important this is to me; for Traveler's sake, it's the damn reason I found you on the Hive-sucking Moon and I have dedicated all of my time since then to keep an eye on you and get you up to speed to be able to help me But you…" She gestured at him, as if presenting him on a display, her expression severe and angry, "You are the most useless Warlock to ever come online and here I am stuck with you."

Epsilon stood, slack jawed and staring as the older Guardian heaved a few breaths, trying to reign her emotions back in before whirling around with a swirl of tabards and skirts and storming away, leaving the younger behind, frozen in disbelief. While her ire was understandable, at least a tiny bit from his perspective, it was harsh to hear and he was stunned beyond belief that she had lost it on him like that. The pair had fights in the past, almost always ending in Eywn screaming expletives at him but this was different; something in her seemed broken and his actions had merely added to the already cacophonous noise the other Warlock was dealing with, causing her to boil over and explode on him as the closest source of ire. Shaking off his stupor, Epsilon raced after her, calling her name until he reached a nexus of hallways in the depths of the Tower. He skidded to a stop, unable to figure out where she had gone, leaving him only one option.

"Ewyn!" His voice reverberated down the halls with no response returning. He called again but the only answer was down a left hand hall when a door slid open and Ikora stepped through. Making eye contact with the Vanguard down the hallway had Epsilon cursing and twisting to run full tilt down a different hallway, heading back upwards toward the main Guardian areas of the Tower. Behind him, Ikora let her anger go and sighed, figuring out exactly who was involved in the break-in to her library. A matter for another day, the Warlock Vanguard returned to what she had been doing, knowing all too well what happened when a Warlock like Ewyn started looking for answers and it would be foolish to try and stop the young Sunsinger from pursuing her goals.


End file.
